An idea, your input please

Apodemus

TrustyOven wrote: »

And how quickly can you liquidate gold?

Very quickly at 1100 Centigrade!

jimjames

mxscbi wrote: »

buy something like a 1oz Britannia (£995 each) this might give better interest then a savings account

How much interest does gold pay? Clue - it's a very round number! I think every savings account will pay more even if it's 0.001%.

Before making a decision always make sure you have the facts. The reality is that gold pays no income at all and the value isn't guaranteed so using it because you think it gives better interest is a very bad idea.

bigfreddiel

mxscbi wrote: »

Hello all, basically I am in the process of saving for a house, I am going to start a Help to Buy ISA and deposit the maximum each month (£200 I believe) so I get the free £3000 at the end, but I also want to save more money, I am an impulse buyer so was thinking would it be a good idea to buy a Gold Sovereign each month (£245) and keep them instead, it's much harder for me to spend that then when the cash is in my account, should I buy a normal Gold Sovereign once a month or save and buy something like a 1oz Britannia (£995 each) this might give better interest then a savings account but even if it doesn't it sounds like a better plan.

Buying physical gold is nuts, coins may have a small advantage, but if you want to buy gold just buy an ETF every month.

Say someone finds your stash of gold, it could be stolen, what about insurance, that will cost. An ETF is very cheap.

Good luck, you'll need it fj

[Deleted User]

OP asked for ideas.
Note to OP - general consensus here seems to be 'Bad Idea', but of course it's your decision.

andygodwin

the only reason to buy actual physical gold is if you think theres going to be a worldwide banking catastrophy,,, a real tulip harvest/south sea bubble/asteroid strike crash..
i which case gold would rocket 2-300% but any invested cash or gold ETF would be wiped out. but then you'd be too afriad to leave the house with any gold in your pocket..

AG

jimjames

andygodwin wrote: »

the only reason to buy actual physical gold is if you think theres going to be a worldwide banking catastrophy,,, a real tulip harvest/south sea bubble/asteroid strike crash..
i which case gold would rocket 2-300% but any invested cash or gold ETF would be wiped out. but then you'd be too afriad to leave the house with any gold in your pocket..

AG

If you think banking collapse is likely then gold is useless too. Not exactly something you can eat or do much with.

Malthusian

andygodwin wrote: »

the only reason to buy actual physical gold is if you think theres going to be a worldwide banking catastrophy,,, a real tulip harvest/south sea bubble/asteroid strike crash..
i which case gold would rocket 2-300% but any invested cash or gold ETF would be wiped out

In the scenario you describe, a complete societal breakdown where gold ETFs become worthless and only gold in your hand has value, gold will not go up 200 - 300%. When society breaks down the value of gold becomes one whatever you've got (i.e. your stash of gold coins) = one immediate means of survival (i.e. day's worth of food or a warm coat). You can't wait for a working gold market to be restored because you'll be dead.

The tulip bubble and the South Sea bubble were not catastrophic events of the kind you describe. They were bog-standard, perfectly commonplace, boring old financial crashes. Like 2001 or 2007. Gold ETFs didn't become worthless in 2007.